Category Archives: Equipment

If you have been here before there is a major 2018 update at the bottom, otherwise read on! For me, especially for the desert and the occasional heavier loads This piece is as much about the decision making process, what … Continue reading →

Planning info and resources for the Oct. 2012 hike We used several sources for planning information including the The Hayduke Trail book which is good but a bit maddening in that the route is only described in an east to … Continue reading →

I love sleeping outside under the stars and when I first started backpacking, a lot, it was mostly in the desert and drier West. We would just roll the bags out on a ground sheet and all was good. If … Continue reading →

I have used and been around a lot of backpacking stoves over the years but have only put my money down on six. The five shown here are the ones I have left, the sixth was a very early Primus … Continue reading →

My first real sleeping bag was Army surplus, filled with feathers and down (more feathers than down it seemed) with some kind of cotton/poplin shell, stuffed fairly small but weighed like 8 pounds. But for $20 it was a vast … Continue reading →

I have owned nine packs over the years, shown in the pictures below. The second picture is from 1973, camping at a trail head at Big Bend National Park. It shows my first three packs in use, as I was … Continue reading →

Maybe the perfect sleeping pad set up (at least for me)! Lightweight, comfortable, warm and durable. Read on. Sleeping pads have undergone lots of changes over the years. Part of it is new technology, part is the search for more comfort as we … Continue reading →